


Against the Odds

by Oyasumi



Category: Free!
Genre: M/M, Sharkbait Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-24
Updated: 2013-12-24
Packaged: 2018-01-05 22:48:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1099495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oyasumi/pseuds/Oyasumi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haru meets a stranger down by the beach.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Against the Odds

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Echocave](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Echocave).



> This is my gift to Echocave! I hope you enjoy it. Merry Christmas!

     When they first met, they were seven.  The young prince, named Haru, lived in a beautiful palace by the sea – not that he really cared about the palace itself, it was all about the sea for him.  Haru finished his mackerel and then immediately headed down to the beach like he did every morning.  But this time it wasn’t like every morning, because sitting in the sand was a strange boy humming a tune.  His hair was a deep red, probably made darker by the fact that it was wet and sticking to his face.  His body was half in the water, and he seemed to be enjoying the small waves lapping against him.  

     It was odd to see someone else there. No one else ever came to this part of the beach, except for on rare occasions his mom and dad and other members of the palace. It was private property. Not that he minded, he just wasn’t used to sharing his water with anyone. “Hey, you.”

     The boy appeared startled and the song he was humming died on his lips. He turned to stare at Haru with wide, curious eyes that matched the color of his hair. His head was slightly tilted, as though trying to figure out what to make of him, but he offered no verbal response.

     “…Haven’t seen you around before…” Haru mumbled as he walked over to the stranger. He never was very good with talking to others and now he was wondering why he had even bothered to call out in the first place. He could have just pretended not to see him and gone for his usual swim. Really, it was none of his business anyway… but something about the boy drew him in.

     He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it certainly hadn’t been for the boy to _hiss_ at him and bare a row full of razor sharp teeth. He also wasn’t expecting the boy to push himself completely into the ocean and start swimming away.  It wasn’t until the boy was far out in the water that he stopped swimming and grabbed onto a nearby rock.  He peered out at Haru from behind it, as though he thought he was now hidden from Haru’s sight.  

     ‘What in the world,’ was the only thing to cross Haru’s mind. He supposed most people would be more alarmed by this situation, but he honestly wasn’t sure what to make of it. When the boy caught sight of Haru looking in his direction and realized he could still see him, he growled.

     ‘…That's kind of cute in a way.’

     Haru was immediately irritated by the thought that had sprung unwelcome into his mind. There was nothing endearing about some feral water child growling at him. He had had enough.

     “Relax. I’m just here to swim. Do whatever you like; I’m not going to bother you.” Haru wasn’t sure if the other boy could understand him or not, but this was getting troublesome and he had just wanted to swim.  It was probably unwise to get into the water with him… (whatever he was, he probably wasn’t human) but Haru had never been denied the water before –by anyone- and he wasn’t about to start now.  To show him he wasn’t a threat, Haru waded in up to his waist and then began to swim in the opposite direction of the growling redhead.

     It was uneventful at first. Nothing bit Haru or dragged him under the water, so that was a good sign.  He glanced back to see what the boy was doing and noticed he had come out from behind his rock, gotten a little closer and was staring at him. When he noticed Haru looking his way, he “casually” pretended to be interested in something underwater. Haru snorted and went back to his swimming.

     Haru tried not to keep looking back at him too much, but the bizarre kid kept getting closer and closer. ‘Why can’t he just leave me alone…’ Just as he was thinking about this, he suddenly felt something grab onto one of his legs and drag it out of the water. “Hey!” He spluttered, trying to stay afloat, and whipped his head to the side to see what was going on.

     The boy was holding onto his leg and examining it with a skeptical look on his face. He leaned in closer for a better look, but Haru kicked out at him and then yanked his leg away while the boy was startled. “What do you think you’re doing?  Don’t just grab people when they’re swimming!” He was annoyed, at this rate he was going to have to get out of the water if this pest wasn’t going to leave him alone.

     The only thing Haru got in return was a frown. Then the boy looked thoughtful for a second and glanced around, as if to make sure no one was watching them. When he appeared satisfied, he pointed downward and Haru’s gaze followed.  Where legs should have been, there was what appeared to be a gray and white tail that traveled all the way up to the boy’s hips. Haru’s eyes widened and he stared down, fascinated. Seeing his interest, the boy pulled his tail up out of the water so that he could get a better look at it.  It reminded Haru of a shark’s tail.  That would explain the teeth too… The young prince couldn’t help but feel a little envious - he loved the water to the point where he never wanted to get out, and here was someone who never had to.

     “You’re a merperson?” Haru reached out and touched his tail. Despite the smooth appearance, the skin was rough under his fingertips. “Tell me about what it’s like to live in the ocean.” For once in his life, Haru was honestly captivated and curious, but the boy just kept staring back at him with a look of mild confusion.  After letting Haru examine him a little while longer he let his tail drop back into the water.  

     Asking about his life in the ocean wasn’t the right place to start when he clearly couldn’t understand Haru. It would have just been so much simpler if the boy spoke the same language as he did. Instead, Haru decided to try something a little easier.

     “What’s your name? I’m Haru.” He pointed at himself. “Haru.”  The merboy still looked puzzled, but then he saw his eyes light up with recognition.

     “Hhhh…” He hissed out.  He was having some trouble sounding out the foreign word. “Hhharoo…” 

     It sounded like a bad butchering of his name, but nevertheless Haru nodded. “That’s right. Haru. And you are?” He pointed at the other to emphasize his point.

     The boy looked thoughtful for a few moments before trying to pronounce his own name. “Rrr…Rrrin…” Once he got it out, he jabbed at his own chest proudly, “Rrinn…Rrrinn…”

     “Rin Rin? Is that your name?” Haru pointed at him again. “Rin Rin?”  Immediately ‘Rin Rin’s’ expression darkened and he seemed decidedly annoyed. He puffed up his cheeks and lightly splashed Haru to show his displeasure.

     “Rrinn.” He growled.

     “…Just one ‘Rin’ then?  That’s too bad, I kind of liked ‘Rin Rin’ better. It suits you more.” Haru lamented. When he heard “Rin Rin” again, Rin responded by giving Haru a harder splash than the last time. 

     “Prince Haru, where are you?”  A voice from the beach called out, “I’m sorry to have to cut your swim short, but we have important visitors and your parents requested that you come home immediately.”

     “Seriously? Of all the days…” Haru grumbled, looking over at the servant on the beach who was calling for him. He had barely gotten any swimming in thanks to Rin Rin and now he already had to leave.  “Hey, I’ll be back tomorrow. Will you be back?” He turned his attention to Rin again, however, the merboy was already gone.  Seeing another human must have spooked him.

      “Oh.” Haru couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed.

* * *

 

      “Haru!  Let’s have a race!” They were both thirteen now, and Rin was swimming by the shoreline back and forth eagerly like he did almost every morning these days.

      ‘I swear, he’s like a dog…’ Haru thought, trying hard to be annoyed, but he just ended up being amused. How could he be annoyed with those bright red eyes peering out at him impatiently?

      Haru had thought after their initial meeting that he probably wouldn’t ever see Rin again. What reason would he have to come again?  It’s not like they had even been able to understand each other. But after nearly a week passed, he had seen a familiar redhead in the water scanning the shore.  When Rin had spotted Haru, he had waved.  He had been able to speak a little bit more of Haru’s language brokenly, though he appeared not to know what half the things he was saying meant, and the other half Haru couldn’t understand due to his pronunciation. They had swum side by side and Haru tried to teach him some new words while they did.  It became a daily thing for them.  When Rin was able to speak Haru’s language a little better, he explained that he had been watching people at the docks and trying to pick up things from them.  Haru had wondered why Rin was going through all the effort, but was grateful.

      The years of persistence paid off though.  Rin was able to speak the language pretty well, though he still had to ask the meanings of a lot of things and the pronunciation of some words was beyond his reach no matter how much Haru corrected him.

      “Is that all you can think of? Racing me?  Of course you’ll win, you were born with a tail and fins for swimming.” Haru said as he swam out to meet his friend, “you should know by now that I don’t care about winning or losing anyway, so why do you want to race?”

      “But I think it’s fun to race you. Besides, I like to watch your legs kick up and down fast while we race…it’s funny.” 

      “You’ve been watching me swim for how many years now and you still think it’s funny? You’re hopeless.” Haru sighed, “One of these days I’m going to beat you and then you’re not going to find it so funny anymore.”

      Rin grinned, “Ahh, so you do care about winning huh?”  Haru shook his head in response. “Well, will you race me anyway?”

      “You’re not going to leave me alone until I do. So let’s go.” Even though he grumbled about it, Haru enjoyed their races too.

      As luck would have it, the day Haru was talking about was that very day – he beat Rin by just a few seconds. He panted, trying to catch his breath and wondering how that had happened. He had beaten a merperson at swimming – it didn’t seem real.  How could that be possible?  Rin had become quiet after his loss.  Haru was starting to wonder if he wasn’t taking it well.

      “Rin?” He looked over to where Rin had been just a moment before, but didn’t see him. Did he leave without saying goodbye…?

       Before he could worry too much, he suddenly felt himself pulled into a hug. “Rin?! What are you doing?”

      “Haru!” Rin gave him a tight squeeze.   His voice could barely contain his enthusiasm, “You’re really something else! The way you swim is amazing.” He gushed.  Haru felt his face heat up at the hug and the compliment wasn’t helping matters either. He couldn’t understand what Rin was getting so worked up over.

      “You were probably just having an off day.  You’ve beaten me so many other times.” Haru shrugged – he was excited about his win, but he was still going to be realistic about it.

      Rin shook his head. “That’s not what happened. I wasn’t having an off day. You’re getting better at swimming.  You get faster every day, I can tell.  So I’ll just have to keep practicing so you don’t beat me again.  But today you won!  You beat me, even with your silly legs.”

      He paused for a second and then added, “For the victor…” Haru felt Rin’s lips gently press against his cheek.  A kiss…?  Yes, it was definitely a kiss, there was no mistaking it.  

      “…Rin?” Haru felt very confused all of a sudden.  Rin let go of him.

      “Ahh  sorry, sorry!  I-I thought that was a human thing…” His face had gone bright red, almost as red as his hair, “Er wait, no actually, I mean, that’s a tradition of my family. When they win a race. So uh, I thought that was that was something humans did too. Yes. “ Somehow, Haru didn’t think that Rin was being honest. 

      “What’s with that look?? You don’t believe me?” Rin flicked his tail back and forth nervously, “Well, it’s true. …Anyway, I should probably get going now.  Forget it ever happened.” Before Haru could protest, Rin had disappeared under the surface and was rapidly swimming home.

      Haru touched his cheek where Rin had kissed him. He wasn’t sure what to make of it, or how he felt about it.

      But a few days later, when Rin (finally) turned back up and won their race like he usually did, Haru returned the favor.

      “For the victor.”

* * *

 

      The sun was setting on the beach, casting a beautiful orange and red dye over the ocean. Haru was sitting on the sand with his feet in the water and Rin was lying beside him on his stomach in the sand, his head resting on his crossed arms.  He wasn’t facing the ocean, instead he was watching Haru.  Haru reached down to run a hand through Rin’s hair; it had dried out and was surprisingly soft. Rin leaned his head into the touch a little and sighed contentedly.

      They were eighteen now and had been “officially” dating ever since they were fourteen. Four years together, it felt like the time flew by. They were spending more time than ever together – it wasn’t uncommon for Haru to leave for the beach first thing in the morning and not come back until late at night.

      His parents were not happy, it wasn’t befitting of a prince who was heir to the throne to cast off all his responsibilities to go play in the water for hours on end.  People whispered about him behind his back.  Haru knew it, but he didn’t care.  It was just a shame that all the attention meant he couldn’t meet up with Rin by the beach near his home anymore.  Instead, he had to sneak out to somewhere a little more private.  It was a hassle, but it was worth it if it meant he wouldn’t be disturbed.

      “I wish I had legs like yours.” Rin broke the silence and Haru looked down at him.

      “Where did that come from?” Haru frowned.

      “You come down to the beach every day to spend time with me, but I can’t return the favor. I can’t go to your home or meet your family.  We can’t walk around together, and I’ll never be able to see the places on land that you enjoy.”

      “…You think I come down to the beach to see you every day and not the water?” Haru responded dryly, earning him a growl.  It had been a while since Rin had growled at him.

      “No really. What are we doing here, Haru?” Rin sat up on his elbows and looked at Haru.  Haru looked off to the side, away from Rin.  Why was he being so serious all of a sudden? “We’ll never be able to be in each other’s world. You’re probably just wasting your time with me.   I’m just stuck here, tying you down.  If only I had legs…”

      “If I had a tail I could go see your underwater city that you’re always telling me about and meet your sister.” Haru shrugged, “If one of us is tying the other down, it’s me. You could be swimming in the ocean all day long, but instead you only spend time in the shallow water with me. “

      “Well, I guess that’s true. But doesn’t that just prove my point?  We’ll never be able to live together; all we’ll ever have is this beach.”  Rin looked like he might cry and Haru felt his chest tighten.

      “I like the beach.” He played with Rin’s hair some more in the hopes of getting him to settle down. “Why are you getting so worked up over this, Rin? We’ve been together for so long, why is it an issue now?”

      “We had to move away from the beach by your home to hide from your people.” Rin pointed out. “What if one day they find you here? We’d have to find a new hiding place. Or what if something was to happen and you had to take over your kingdom? It will happen someday and then you won’t be able to come to see me anymore.”

      “Then I’d build a giant pool in the palace and have you come live in it.” Haru answered, completely serious.

      “Oh really.” Rin didn’t seem impressed by his solution.

      “Yes. I’d put it in the throne room so I could watch you swim while I conducted official business.”

      “If there was a pool in your throne room, you’d be swimming in it too.” Rin laughed. Haru was glad that his mood had lightened up.

      “You’re right. I would.”  If there was a pool in his palace, he would definitely be swimming in it.

      The sky had darkened while the two of them were talking. It was night now, and Haru would have to head back to the palace soon. Rin reached over and put his hand on Haru’s.  “Haru…” Even in the dark, Haru could tell that Rin was blushing.

      “Hm?” Haru turned his hand over so that he could squeeze Rin’s.

      “It’s just…I love you so much. I don’t want to lose you.” Rin brought Haru’s hand up to his lips and kissed it.  “I never thought I would fall in love with a human, but there isn’t anyone else I’d rather be with. So I don’t want to lose you.”

      “You won’t, Rin. You pushed your way into my life and now I’m never going to let you go.”  Haru promised.

* * *

 

      There were rumors of an eccentric king who was newly crowned in a country to the south. Apparently his first order as king had been to destroy an entire wing of his palace in order to build a giant indoor aquarium.  Rumor had it that the 26 year old man was more fish than human and visited the beach all day, _every_ day, and had to be dragged back to the palace the day of his coronation.  Not wanting to be separated from his precious ocean, he had ordered that the ocean be brought to him instead.

      The rumors were true.  Well, partially anyway.  No one needed to know the real reason why Haru had decided to build an saltwater pool in his palace - that he had fallen hopelessly in love with a merman and had promised to stay with him forever. 

      Construction had taken a long time. Many rooms had to be destroyed to make one large room, and then they had to tear out the floor to dig into the ground.  Haru hadn’t been allowed to go visit Rin as much as he would have liked, he had a country to run and he couldn’t escape from his duties.  Often he’d find himself staring out the window at the ocean, at the little red dot that swam back and forth for a few hours before disappearing back under the water. He had wished construction would hurry up.

      When Haru was allowed a few spare moments to visit, Rin would bring him up plants and coral and fish in vases from the bottom of the ocean to decorate the aquarium with. “Is it almost done yet?” He would ask, and it broke Haru’s heart because he could see how lonely his boyfriend was.  It had been a lonely time for both of them.

      “Haru!” A splash of water caught the side of his cheek and brought him back to the present. “What are you thinking about with such a serious look on your face?”

      “Ah, sorry.” Haru apologized sheepishly. “It’s nothing.”

      It had been about a week since Rin had “moved in.” Haru had picked Rin up from the beach in his arms one night and carried him to the palace, bridal style.  Rin had teased him the entire way about how romantic it was to be carried in Haru’s big strong arms in the moonlight. Haru was just surprised he even made it – Rin was unexpectedly heavy.

      The redhead grinned out at him from the side of the pool, “Well then, come swim with me!”

      Haru didn’t have to be asked twice.


End file.
